The Bell Tower and Drum Tower of Beijing were listed as the cultural relics under municipal protection in 1957 and listed as a cultural relic under state-level protection in 1996.

Used during the Yuan (1271-1368), Ming (1368-1911), and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties, the Drum and Bell Towers functioned as ancient Beijing's time keepers. They set the pace and rhythm of daily life for everyone, from the emperor to the common citizen. The Drum tower's drums were used to keep time at night, while the Bell Tower's bells kept time during the day. The acoustics of the Drum and Bell Towers was so good that they drums and bells could be heard throughout the ancient city of Beijing. Beginning at 7:00p.m. the drums in the Drum Tower were beaten every two hours through the night until 7:00a.m. The towers were used for centuries until 1924 when they stopped being used. Many people could by that point own their own clocks and the Drum and Bell Towers were considered outdated concepts. 

Originally built in 1272 (during the reign of Kublai Khan,Yuan Dynasty) and located 100 meters south of the Bell Tower, Beijing's Drum Tower is one of the oldest buildings in Beijing. The Drum Tower is built on a 4 meter high stone foundation with a wooden structure built on top. The entire structure is 46.7 meters high. The Drum Tower is a two story building. On its second floor there originally were 25 drums. Among them, there were one big drumw measuring two meters in diameter and 24 smaller drums (The big one represents a year and the 24 small drums represent 24 solar terms of China). Unfortunately, only the big drum remains. There is a balcony surrounding the second floor that provides stunning views of Beijing’s inner city. At 7:00p.m. the drums were beaten quickly 18 times then slowly for 18 times. It was beaten in cycles until it was beaten for a total of 108 times.(108 times represent one year in ancient times.) This announces the beginning of the night watches. The drums were beaten every two hours which not only announced the time, but also the change of the guards in the city.